Emollients are materials that are applied to the skin of subjects to produce softness or smoothness. They have been used for centuries in both cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. Historically, natural emollients were obtained from extracts or directly concentrated materials from plants or animals, while modern emollients also include partially synthetic (e.g., derivatives of natural products) or completely synthetic materials.
One of the properties that emollients exhibit is that of spreadability. Generally, the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and personal care industries have viewed spreadability as a dual property where some products benefit by using emollients with high spreadability (e.g., lotions) and other products benefit by using emollients with low spreadability (e.g., lipsticks).
Therefore, there is a current and continuing need for emollient type compositions with improved spreading properties.